Ryanair has added four new routes from Jordan to its winter 2023-24 schedule, increasing its presence in Amman and growing from Aqaba.

The Irish airline has filed plans to launch three services from Amman’s Queen Alia International Airport (AMM), connecting the capital city with Brussels Charleroi Airport (CRL), Belgium; Marseille Provence Airport (MRS), France; and Pisa Airport (PSA), Italy.

Flights to MRS will be the first to launch, commencing on Oct. 30, followed by PSA the next day and CRL starting Nov. 1. All three routes will operate twice a week aboard Boeing 737-800s, data provided by OAG Schedules Analyser shows.

While Amman-Marseille and Amman-Pisa are unserved and are new city pairs for the carrier, Ryanair has previously served the Amman-Brussels market, flying from AMM to Brussels Airport (BRU) between October 2018 and October 2022. However, the carrier cut the route from its winter 2022-23 and summer 2023 schedules, citing an increase in charges and taxes by the Belgian airport.

Following the move, Royal Jordanian in April announced plans to launch AMM-BRU flights from Oct. 26, operating three times per week using Airbus A320s and A321s. The decision sees Royal Jordanian return to BRU after more than a decade away.

Ryanair’s network additions expand its presence in AMM to 18 destinations by early November, compared with 15 at the same time a year ago. The ULCC plans to offer some 7,785 weekly departure seats, marking a year-on-year rise of 29%.

During November 2023, Ryanair will be the second-largest operator from AMM by capacity, accounting for 6.6% of all departure seats. Royal Jordanian leads the way with 41%, while Emirates Airline is third with 5.1%.

Alongside the new routes to Jordan’s capital, the ULCC has scheduled the launch of flights from Spain’s capital Madrid to Aqaba, the country’s only coastal city. Flights will be offered once a week from Nov. 2. Madrid becomes one of seven destinations Ryanair plans to serve from Aqaba’s King Hussein International Airport this winter.